"When the United States and coalition forces rolled in, the people of Tikrit basically lost their lifestyle as they knew it. Everything changed for them." The influence of the local boy who rode from poverty to the pinnacle of wealth and power still looms large in the town, despite continuing work by American forces to cover up statues and murals showing Saddam leading his forces into battle. Just how wealthy and powerful is clear from the dozens of palaces and pleasure houses the dictator ordered to be built for himself in this once impoverished and neglected bend of the Tigris river. Newcomers have now moved into those imposing buildings, putting their particular stamp on the premises. One of Saddam's indoor swimming pools, for example, is being prepared for American soldiers eager to cool off during Tikrit's blistering summer. The loyalty to Saddam is apparent on the walls of his birthplace, Awjeh, just south of Tikrit. Many of Saddam's relatives from that town occupied senior positions in intelligence, the army and the Baath Party. One man, Ali Nida Al-Hussein, who described himself as Saddam Hussein's cousin, said he held the former president -- whose whereabouts are unknown -- in high esteem. "Since his childhood he was a hero and brave. History will judge him fairly -- he didn't betray his country." In his relatives' eyes the dictator did no wrong. "The Iraqi people don't hate Saddam," Al-Hussein told CNN. "They hate the people who were around him. Saddam didn't hurt anyone. Saddam didn't destroy anyone."